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Nehemiah 12 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
Many years ago a woman in town asked me and another pastor to come over and cleanse her apartment. Not knowing exactly what we were dealing with, we agreed. Come to find out, she simply wanted us to pray for protection over her place and the belongings within it. It wasn’t really a normal request, but again, we agreed.
After we were done praying for her apartment, she asked us to pray for her cat. Yes… her cat. Now, let me just say first and foremost, I hate cats. I’m sorry if that changes your opinion of me. I’m allergic to them and somehow they all know it! Most times I’m around a cat it tries to get into my personal space. So, I struggled a bit to try and gather my thoughts. I have never prayed for a cat in my entire life!
I don’t know if our animals will be in heaven with us or not, but this woman loved her cat very much and wanted to plead with God for a blessing. So, once again, we agreed. We prayed for the cat and proceeded to walk out of her apartment and into the lobby. As we walked out into the lobby and started to leave, she remembered she had one more request.
She had forgotten that she wanted us to pray for her car. Yes… her car. There was no specific request for safe travels or mechanical stability but she just wanted us to lay hands on her car and pray for it. We agreed.
So what’s the point of this story?
The priests and the Levites purified themselves; they also purified the people, the gates and the wall.
Nehemiah 12:30 NASB
I’m going to be honest. I have searched many commentaries and I have no clue what it meant for them to purify the gates and the wall. Maybe they anointed them with oil? Maybe they laid hands on them? Maybe there was a cat they purified as well?
Seriously though, the focus here is not the apartment or the cat or the walls; it’s the heart of the individual. This woman genuinely believed that God was over her apartment and her cat and her car. She trusted that God cared about these little things and that He would hear our prayers.
The priests and the Levites had a heart to sanctify themselves in the presence of the Lord. It was a time of thanksgiving and praise. It drew them into a deeper relationship as they reflected on the blessings God had provided for them. They worshiped Him with heartfelt gratitude, and that is something we all can learn from.